Saturday, 20 March 2010

THE JOHN HOUR: Producing a body of work which is whimsical yet sinister; familiar yet alien, the three emerging artists—Emma Gibson, Emily Pugh and Raven Smith—functioning collectively under the moniker, The John Hour, continue to investigate and challenge the universally understood rules for a coherent modern society. With photography, set design and installation as their combined media, the trio rigorously explore personal and universal reactions to the construction of the world we live in. In the second in a series of interrogative exhibitions, society's codes of conduct are examined, as are the values attributed to our individual and collective actions.

JAPED EMULSIFIERS
RAVEN SMITH,

TOWARDS THE LIGHT 2010
EMILY PUGH,
Installation using found books.

Challenged with the intimate, industrial nature of the building, I wanted to create an organic and delicate display that could still be capturing in its eclectic setting. The effect of TOWARDS THE LIGHT is to be simultaneously graceful yet momentarily unsettling for the viewer walking through the stairwell.

Aesthetically, light combined with pattern, tone and line bring hidden life to the book pages transforming their function into a more visual, wondrous experience.

DIE NOW PAY LATER
EMMA GIBSON,
Mixed media installations 2010

Assisted suicide is currently illegal in the UK. Since the suicide act of 1961 it is not illegal to commit suicide although it is forbidden to aid another’s. Helping someone to die carries a prison sentence of up to 14 years. The guidelines for prosecution are constantly changing.

The argument between prolonging life and hastening death parallels the struggles between conscience and heart, compassion and indifference.

Every warrior society has, for thousands of years, experienced a "purification ritual" to help returning combatants deal with their "blood guilt" and to reassure them that what they did in combat was "good." These rituals traditionally involve long periods while marching or sailing home, the cool-down, group therapy period.

The introduction of “conditioning” in modern army training, aircraft, technology & the individual replacement system that hampered bonding and ensured that soldiers often arrived and left as strangers, resulted in the denial of this purification ritual and millions of psychiatric casualties, hence the discovery of PTSD. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

It is often said that "All's fair in love and war," but is this a cultural conspiracy?

‘Somewhere Inside’ is an exhibition of works that explore themes of the innate, subconscious and hidden sides of our characters that exist inside us all.
Work that seems to connect with something with in, haunting images that make subconscious connections to parts of the human psyche.

Including painting, drawing, photography, film and installation; ‘Somewhere Inside’ is a diverse exhibition from artists who’s work compliments and contrasts each other, much like the processes of the human mind.

Exploring sides of the character we may celebrate or deny, somewhere inside they exist regardless. Similar to the indescribable visions from dreams, that flash familiarity and bewilderment.